To New Highs In Quiet Mornings
by looneytails
Summary: In which Will is a friend but wants to be more.


**To new highs in quiet mornings**

_Only way I can be is to say what I see and have my shadow hanging over me. I don't know where I'm running but I know how to run, 'cause running's the thing I've always done._

Nico di Angelo had never been afraid of heights.

Even though he knew that his father and Zeus weren't on the best of terms, their dislike of each other hadn't extended to his day-to-day life. Since what he'd done to his mother, the ruler of Olympus seemed to have turned a blind eye to Nico's existence, preferring to worry about Percy and how he was a direct violation of the Big Three agreement.

Despite his general predilection for the Underworld, Nico sometimes found himself climbing the most unusual of spots, craving a type of solitude that his father's kingdom could not offer. While the darkness would always be a part of him, there were moments when even the son of Hades desired a place in the sun.

This, however, was not what Nico thought about as he perched himself on top of Zeus' Fist.

The fourteen year old ran a hand through his hair, ignoring how long it had gotten. The way his dark fringe fell on his eyes, hampering his sight, had forced him into this habit, but, after two months rebuilding camp and working as the Greeks' ambassador, Nico couldn't find it in himself to care.

Gods, he was exhausted.

He'd kept true to his promises: no shadow-travelling, no disappearing and going off on his own.

Nico knew he had a lot of reasons not to like Camp Half-Blood. There were shadows that no amount of sunlight could dispel; the pain of losing his sister, the years of isolation, the death that had tainted these grounds because of the wars. Still, Bianca would have been proud of him. He'd let go of his grudges – most of them, at least – and had accepted his place among the other campers.

Things weren't as simple as Reyna had made them seem back at that final mixed campfire. The Romans and the Greeks still had quite a lot to figure out. The years of rivalry and distrust couldn't be erased that quickly, but there was hope for them.

Nico leaned against the rock, letting his head fall back. In the tranquility of this early morning, his certainty that things would work out was stronger than ever.

"It will be okay," he muttered to himself, closing his eyes. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips, but Nico didn't suppress it. There was no one around for him to guard himself from.

"You can bet your sweet ass it will." The voice came from above and, in his hurry to get into a defensive stance, Nico almost fell from the rock. "Careful there, cowboy. It's just me."

He steadied his footing and lifted a hand to shield his eyes from the sun, finally looking at the boy who'd just arrived.

"Solace," he growled. "What in Hades are you doing here?"

Will Solace merely stood there with his arms crossed, soft eyes calmly taking in Nico's appearance.

"I'm checking on you, of course." He huffed. "You skipped your weekly checkup, as always. Are you trying to get me mad? Seriously!"

The indignation in his tone brought a light blush to Nico's cheeks and the dark-haired boy turned his head down, escaping those inquiring blue eyes.

"I guess I lost track of time," he lied.

Nico actually knew that he'd missed his appointment, but just couldn't bring himself to go into the infirmary. He'd always been uncomfortable around Will, but the sensation had only increased in the last couple months.

Since taking the position of sword-fighting teacher, he'd at least found new excuses to use to avoid the Head Healer.

"Yeah, 'cause of your trips to Camp Jupiter or your classes or your father and his tasks." Will narrowed his eyes. "Save it, di Angelo. I've heard it all before."

Nico glared back, raising his chin in defiance. This kid seriously had a knack for pissing him off.

"What do you expect me to do? Neglect my responsibilities?" Dark eyes shifted from the other's expression to the trees. "You should know me better than that by now."

Even though he wasn't looking, Nico felt Will deflate. He hadn't meant to sound hurt, but he wasn't about to go back on his words. They were true, after all. The time they'd spent together since the Gigantomachy should have been more than enough for the son of Apollo to recognize something as simple as his sense of duty.

It should have been enough for Will to realize he wasn't actually worth his time, too. And yet, here he was.

"I do know you better." Will moved to his left, trying to catch Nico's eyes. "And that's how I know you are making up excuses. I just can't figure out why." The boy shuffled his feet. "Did I… Did I do something wrong?"

Nico frowned at his feet, still refusing to look up at the blond.

The truth was that he didn't quite understand the reasons himself. He usually had fun when around Will. The guy was laid-back and just generally happy. He liked to make the most idiotic jokes, but Nico could tell it was just his way of trying to make him laugh. The son of Hades could appreciate the attempts.

Still, something held him back.

Maybe it was the unfamiliarity of having something who insisted on taking care of him. Maybe it was the suspicion derived from years of having to look over his shoulder at all times. And maybe… maybe it was because of the way something inside him coiled, like a ball of pent up energy, every time his eyes met Will's.

He didn't want to think about it, so he hid. Running away wasn't just an impulse anymore, it was a habit ingrained in him.

If he couldn't fight it, the only other option was flight.

"It's nothing like that!" Nico snapped back, turning to face the forest. His neck felt warm, but the wind had picked up and it made him shiver.

He didn't need to turn around to know that Will was scowling. The healer had a penchant for overreaction.

"Oh, for Apollo's sake!" He moved swiftly, dropping something on top of Nico's shoulders. "Stop coming up here when you don't even have a jacket!"

The son of Hades tried to shrug it off, but the other boy hold on to the cloth, forcing the buttons shut.

"Stop mothering me, Solace!"

Will gasped dramatically, before letting a smile take his lips. It melted away the fight in Nico.

"I'm _doctoring_ you, Shadow Boy. Now stop squirming, I'm not touching you." He let go of the jacket. "See? There's a flu going around camp. I don't need any more patients."

The blond dusted off his hands and dropped himself to the ground.

Nico eyed him wearily. It was strange to have someone that obstinate around. While Jason and Percy could be headstrong about their beliefs, they were also easily quelled by their girlfriends' wishes or by his own rudeness.

Will's perseverance was disconcerting.

"I'm sorry for missing the checkup," he said after a moment, giving up on his façade of anger.

Will's eyebrows shot up, but he smiled, patting the spot next to him on the rock ground.

"And I'm sorry for getting so irritated. I just worry." Will looked around. His lips twisted uncomfortably, like he was actively searching for a way to change the subject. "Hm… You do know that this rock is cursed, right? After the Battle of the Labyrinth, not many are brave enough to come here."

Nico grinned, ignoring how creepy it made him look, and sat down.

"I know." He raised his eyebrows. "Are you afraid?"

Will snickered, shaking his head.

"Strangely enough, I think I would be, if I was here with anyone but you," he paused, "Ghost King."

The boy spluttered, taken aback by the nickname.

"How in hell do you know about that?" He felt himself flush, glaring at Will as the blond laughed with satisfaction.

"Percy, of course. The guy couldn't stop talking about you. I think he and Annabeth will adopt you as their son if you let them." Nico groaned, but his lips twitched up. Will beamed. "Don't be like that. It's cute."

"You're just making me feel worse."

After the healer's laughter died out, the two stayed silent for some time, taking in the peacefulness of the morning.

The wind had picked up, but the sun shone brightly at them from above and, while Nico always felt cold, Will merely stretched himself in the sunlight, absorbing its warmth. The dark-haired boy turned his head slightly to the side, smiling at nothing, charmed by how much his friend resembled a cat sometimes.

"_What else?_" Will Solace had asked, all those weeks ago. "_Sunshine is the best way to dispel the shadows and the darkness inside you!_" His tone always had a tinge of outrage when he talked to Nico, but also of affection, like the healer just couldn't stop himself from reprimanding the son of Hades, not out of a strange sense of responsibility, but out of genuine concern.

The treatment had worked. Even now, it was under the shimmering rays that Nico felt most solid, most like himself.

"Apple?"

Nico nodded before he could stop himself. In his search for solitude, he'd ended up missing breakfast.

"Sometimes it feels like _you_ want to adopt me," he muttered under his breath.

The son of Apollo turned to look at him, tilting his head to the side. "What?"

He almost grimaced; he hadn't meant to be heard by his companion. Nico took a bite of the fruit, buying time.

"You act oddly around me, Solace." He looked ahead at the trees, avoiding the soft look that he was sure to find on his friend's eyes. "You can be rude and overbearing, but there are also moments when you are absurdly thoughtful. Like just now."

"Nico, look at me."

He did. Will seemed serious, almost as much as back in the infirmary, when he'd spent three days lecturing him about health care and vaccines, and drowning him in sunlight to the point where freckles started to appear on his cheeks.

The intensity of his stare was unusual. The son of Apollo normally carried a relaxed expression, like he was too distracted by the wonders of life to actually focus on something. This new-found concentration was unsettling.

"What?" Nico asked, sulking.

"I really like you. As in like-like you." The confession took the boy by surprise and he accidentally let the apple roll down Zeus' fist. "No need to look that shocked. I thought I was being pretty obvious about it."

Nico blinked.

"You hadn't," he replied dryly.

Will smiled, not a bit bothered by the tone he'd used.

"I think that's just you being dense. Jason knows. It's why he told me about the touching thing." He leaned towards the dark haired boy, winking. "I think he's rooting for me."

The son of Hades shrunk away, still unaccustomed to invasions of his personal space.

His mind reeled with what he'd just heard; confusion and awe mixing with the disbelief that anyone could ever feel that way about him.

Nico decided to focus on the least startling thing about that statement.

"Jason is so meddlesome!"

The blond by his side laughed, seemingly unaffected by his frown and his lack of response.

"He just wants you to be happy." Will hesitated, glancing at Nico through the corner of his eye. "And I like to think that I can do that, make you happy." His ears were red again. "I know that we've barely talked and that most of what I think of our friendship is just me projecting my feelings, not actual… anything." He sighed. "But I've watched you from afar for so long… I'm not about to let you slip away from me after finally finding a way to be close to you."

Nico looked up at him then, at this beautiful, stubborn, bossy boy, who he'd seen around camp and ignored so many times before. And he wondered how he could ever have been just another nameless camper to him.

"I–" Nico started, still unable to get his eyes off of him.

Will raised a hand, asking for him to stop.

"I really like you, but I'm not asking you to say anything in return." The blond ducked his head between his knees. When he talked again, his voice was muffled. "You don't really know me, Nico, and I really, really want you to. Camp is different after the war, I guess we all are, and you're finally in a place where you can open yourself to others and where others are finally capable of being open towards you."

Nico smiled in spite of himself, amused by the boy's franticness.

"Thank you," he whispered, bumping their shoulders lightly. Will lifted his head; his eyes were blue and as gentle as ever, but his cheeks were pink. Nico knew his face was probably the same. "All you've said... It means a lot to me."

Will smiled, sitting up.

"I'm cool with that." He chuckled. "This doesn't mean I'm giving up, ok? I refuse to go back to being background noise. I want you to be conscious of me."

Nico scoffed.

"Oh, I _am_."

The blinding grin he received then almost made him want to melt into the shadows that darkened the edge of Zeus' Fist. The warmth on his cheeks grew.

"Anyway," Will bit his lip, as if trying to stop himself from smiling. "I felt like it needed to be said, so you'll have no doubts over what I feel towards you. I mean… Yeah, I want to be your friend and I'm super cool with that if that's how far you ever want to go." He stared at Nico with wide eyes in what was probably an attempt at reassurance. "But I want you to know where I stand, so you'll consider me as _more._ Maybe. One day."

His expression was so sheepish that Nico almost laughed. Instead, he nodded, suppressing his desire to smile.

"Where is all this confidence coming from?" Nico managed to keep himself in check, pulling the jacket closer and playing with its hem. If he'd learned anything about the son of Apollo in the last couple of months, it was that the guy had the weirdest inferiority complex possible.

"Yeah, I don't know either." Will groaned. "I probably won't be able to look you in the eye for the next three days." He gave a light punch to the son of Hades' shoulder, already awkward in his gestures. "Gimme a week until I can stop blushing."

The way he buried his face in his hands was so endearing that, for the first time in his life, Nico felt the unmistakable urge to kiss someone senseless.

He flushed, suddenly glad that Will was too distracted by his own embarrassment to pay attention to Nico's.

"Ok." The blond pushed himself up quickly, sighing. "I'll go hide in the infirmary now. I guess I'll see you at lunch."

Nico nodded.

"Oh, don't forget your…" He started to take off Will's jacket, but the boy stopped him, grabbing his hands.

"No," Will chastised. "Do you ever listen to the things I tell you? If you get the flu, you'll be spending _days_ in my care, and I just said that I'll need some time to recover from the mushiness of my declaration."

The dark-haired boy pressed his lips together, rolling his eyes at Will. He eyed their joined hands with distaste.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. The touching." The other let go, grimacing. "I'll be going now." He took a step back, almost tripping because of the slope. Will caught himself, just barely, and sent a nervous smile at Nico, who scoffed.

As he went, the son of Hades heard Will mutter to himself, "I _need_ to learn boundaries."

Nico brought his hands up, surprised by the lingering heat. He bit the inside of his cheek, wondering if it would really be that horrible if Will Solace never got the hang of self-control.

* * *

><p><strong>This is my first pjato fic in so long, I can't even believe it. I hope I did ok.<strong>

**Also, I would like to thank my dear friend Rachel, who betaed this story and who helped me with Will's characterization.**

**I wrote this while listening to 27 by Passenger, which is a very good song.**


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